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Venus may still be geologically active, new 3d simulations reveal

ETH Zurich researchers used advanced 3D computer simulations to show that Venus's giant rift valleys may be geologically young and still expanding. Published in Nature Geoscience, the study challenges the long-held view of Venus as a dormant world and could guide future NASA and ESA missions to the planet.

Astronomers capture direct image of third planet in Beta Pictoris system

Astronomers using the James Webb Space Telescope have discovered and directly imaged a third planet in the Beta Pictoris system, a young planetary system located approximately 63 light-years from Earth. The newly identified exoplanet, designated Beta Pictoris d, joins two previously known gas giants orbiting the star. The direct imaging achievement — capturing actual light from the planet rather than inferring its presence through transit or radial velocity — provides scientists with an unprecedented opportunity to study the atmosphere and formation history of a young planetary system still in its early evolutionary stages.

Scientists revive powerful antibiotic vancomycin that superbugs had defeated

Researchers have found a way to revive vancomycin, a powerful antibiotic that many dangerous bacteria had learned to resist. Instead of creating a new drug, scientists paired vancomycin with a small molecule called pghi-4 that blocks bacterial resistance mechanisms. The breakthrough offers a potential new weapon against drug-resistant infections, which the WHO has identified as one of the top global health threats.

First sugar molecule detected in interstellar space, boosting life's origin theories

Astronomers have detected erythrulose, a four-carbon sugar, in interstellar space for the first time, marking a major advance in understanding how life's building blocks form beyond Earth. The discovery, published in Nature Astronomy, was made by an international team led by the Center for Astrobiology in Spain using radio telescope observations. The finding suggests that millions of tons of sugars could have arrived on early Earth via comets and meteorites.

First confirmed atmosphere found on rocky exoplanet in habitable zone

Astronomers have confirmed the first atmosphere around a rocky planet in another star's habitable zone. The discovery, made using the James Webb Space Telescope, marks a milestone in the search for potentially life-supporting worlds beyond our solar system. The planet, LHS 1140b, is a rocky world about 1.7 times Earth's size orbiting a red dwarf star 49 light-years away. Scientists detected helium escaping from its atmosphere, confirming the presence of a gaseous envelope.

Scientists pinpoint brain immune cells as surprising culprit behind sleep loss in Alzheimer's

Researchers have discovered that the brain's own immune cells, microglia, may be the hidden driver of sleep disturbances in Alzheimer's disease, a finding that could open new treatment pathways. The study found that targeting these immune cells restored up to two hours of sleep in animal models without clearing amyloid plaques. Separately, scientists identified a protein called SORLA that protects the brain from toxic tau tangles, offering another potential target for Alzheimer's therapy.

Astronomers scan exoplanet K2-18b for alien signals in most powerful search yet

Astronomers have conducted an unusually powerful radio survey of exoplanet K2-18b, one of the most promising worlds in the search for extraterrestrial life, using both the VLA and MeerKAT telescopes. The scan represents one of the most comprehensive searches for technosignatures ever attempted. Separately, researchers found that eating chili peppers may raise the risk of esophageal cancer, and a new species of monkey was identified in the Democratic Republic of Congo, marking only the fifth new monkey species found in Africa in 75 years.